The Invitation wins one of the worst weekends of the year.
Despite what should be a lucrative three-day weekend with Labor Day, big studios have always treated this time of year as a dumping ground, usually sending low-budget comedies, low-budget horror, and films greenlit as awards contenders that won't be winning any awards out to die in late August and early September. Last year, the one-two-three punch of Free Guy, Candyman, and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings suggested that Hollywood shouldn't have been sleeping on this part of the year. However, with the logjam at effects houses backing up blockbusters, Hollywood has gone back to its old habit of cleaning out the cupboard at the end of summer and throwing out what they find in the back into multiplexes nationwide.
Leading the charge on this spectacularly awful weekend, attendance-wise was The Invitation. The PG-13 horror film, in which Game of Thrones and Fast and Furious vet Nathalie Emmanuel learns that her long-lost family is actually a nest of vampires took #1 despite only earning $6.8 million. That's the worst performance for a #1 movie in over a year, since Spiral led with just $4.6 million in mid-May 2021, right before A Quiet Place Part II and Cruella brought movie theaters back to life. Unfortunately, a title of the caliber of either of those isn't on the horizon for weeks. As for The Invitation, bad word of mouth could mean the party is over before it hits $20 million.
Chugging up one spot to second is the long-running Bullet Train, which took $5.6 million for a total of $78.2 million. It is still keeping pace with The Lost City, falling only a million behind that action-comedy also starring Brad Pitt and Sandra Bullock. With little competition, there's no reason to think that Train is going to derail anytime soon on its way to $100 million.
Beast was anything but in its third weekend, as it fell 58% to $4.9 million. This gives the Idris Elba vs. lion thriller a ten-day total of $20.1 million. It looks to be headed to a final gross of around $30 million. That's somewhat of a disappointment, but at least it is doing significantly better than Elba's other late August movie (more on that one in a minute).
Continuing to fly high is Top Gun: Maverick. The actioner scored another $4.7 million as it brings its total to $691.2 million. It should fly past $700 million in the next couple of weeks, which would be enough to land in the all time domestic Top 5. $700 million is a tough challenge for the only two holiday movies that might be able challenge Maverick for the title of 2022's top movie, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Avatar: Way of the Water.
After a spectacular debut last weekend, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero tumbled back to Earth this weekend, falling a whopping 78% to $4.7 million, a drop that could easily make Super Hero one of the most front-loaded wide releases of all time. The animated action flick fought to a ten-day total of $30.9 million. That's enough to push it past the gross of Dragon Ball Super: Broly from 2019, and it should pass the gross of Jujitsu Kaisen 0 from earlier this year as well. However, it likely has no chance of catching Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train, which will remain the highest-grossing non-Pokémon anime in North America.
DC League of Super-Pets was able to bark up $4.1 million for a total of $74 million. It's still staying steady with the gross of April release The Bad Guys, but the film's ability to make up for so-so weekends with strong weekdays is rapidly coming to an end. This is the final week that any kids will not be back to school, so expect weekday grosses to drop significantly off very soon. Pets better hope that the lack of any other kid-friendly titles out will help propel its box office through September.
Opening terribly in 7th is Three Thousand Years of Longing, starring Idris Elba as a djinn who grants Tilda Swinton three wishes. The George Miller-directed film, described by some as Aladdin for adults, couldn't even wish up three million dollars of income, as it could only manage $2.9 million, or about 5% of the production budget. This one definitely has the potential to be a cult hit someday, but as for today, all the wishes in the world probably won't carry it past $10 million.
Rounding out the Top 10, Minions: The Rise of Gru made $2.7 million for a total of $354.8 million, Thor: Love and Thunder made $2.6 million for a total of $336.5 million, and Where the Crawdads Sing made $2.3 million for a total of $81.9 million.
Outside the Top Ten, the IMAX re-release of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story did decent business, taking $1.1 million. Meanwhile, Star Wars vet John Boyega's new thriller Breaking got off to an awful start, only taking in $1 million.
For theater owners hoping for some relief, this Labor Day weekend probably won't provide it. The biggest new release is the religious satire Honk for Jesus, Save Your Soul, starring Sterling K. Brown as a megachurch pastor attempting a comeback after a scandal, and Regina Hall as his loving wife, who appears to be the power behind the throne. The fact it's also debuting on Peacock is an indication that Universal/Focus doesn't have much faith in the film's box office potential. Also out is a pair of re-releases. Jaws swims back into theaters ahead of its 50th anniversary in a couple of years, while Spider-Man: No Way Home, which has yet to reach its first anniversary, swings back into multiplexes with 15 minutes of extra footage. Will last year's biggest film bring moviegoers back out? Could audiences decide to honk for Honk for Jesus? Could more people decide to accept The Invitation this weekend? Or could Bullet Train chug back to the top spot? We'll find out next week.
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